Big Screen/Your Scene

Craft Tips and Techniques from Today’s Blockbusters

"Fool’s Gold and the Missing Treasure"

I love a great romance. Something that stirs my heart and makes me believe anew in true love. And what’s not to love about Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson?

Any movie that takes place in the Caribbean is a winner for me. Add to that a buried treasure and an adventure . . . I thought I’d love their newest romantic comedy, Fool’s Gold.

Read more

Author By Night

Juggling Act: The Life of an Author

Camera pulls tight on a woman lounging in a leather recliner. Soft jazz music plays in the background. She sips from a mocha cappuccino while reviewing text on her laptop that magically appeared overnight. Another gift from the writing fairy.

Folks slow as they walk by, whispering in hushed tones as they elbow each other, “Is that her? Oh my! It is.” The woman smiles benignly and takes another sip. Tomorrow she’ll have lunch with her agent, another one of their monthly appointments. The agent will surely have news of a six-figure signing bonus. Then next month, there’s the quarterly face-to-face with her editor and publisher.

Read more

Short Stories

Convertible top down in her brand-new red mini-cooper, Ann maneuvered through the rutted dirt road leading to the rustic cottage she’d rented for the summer. Oak trees hanging with moss and a pond home to mallard ducks made for the perfect setting to write her best-selling novel—a romance with knights, maidens, and castles, but definitely no creepy...

---

An attractive older woman with flaming red hair stepped out from behind a light pole.

“Whoa!” How did she do that?

Steve Languth had paused at the curb, waiting for the light to change. Had she materialized? Or was he hallucinating? Maybe he’d been reading too many science fiction novels when he should have been writing his term paper.

Read more

Making A Scene

WRITING EFFECTIVE PROLOGUES—Part II

In Part I we discussed the need for a prologue to be compelling and short. Here we look at a second principle: A prologue should be removed from the main story by either time or space.

Time—Back

A prologue may be an event occurring before the main story. It could be years or mere days. It depends on...

Read more

Write Real

Why I Write

Some people write because we can’t not write. Some write to rant. Some write because they like to hear their own voices on the page. Some write because they feel it a mandate from God. Some write because they have valuable information to share that will help improve others’ lives. Some need to make an income. Some use it as therapy, to straighten out their heads.

Read more

For Writers

Preludes to a Kiss

How can a great love story be written without so much as a kiss? I didn’t realize I’d accomplished such a thing until CFOM’s esteemed editor, Michelle, pointed it out and asked if I’d write a how-to article about it.

As I’ve pondered this, I’ve come to a conclusion: A kiss (or even a love scene) is simply icing on the cake. A kiss is not the ultimate...

Read more